


Over the Hills

by Livitup



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Beast - Freeform, Black Butler - Freeform, Book of Circus, Joker - Freeform, Jumbo - Freeform, Kuroshitsuji - Freeform, Noah's Ark circus troupe, Peter - Freeform, Wendy - Freeform, dagger - Freeform, doll - Freeform, noah's ark circus, snake - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-13
Updated: 2017-03-06
Packaged: 2018-09-23 23:08:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9686222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livitup/pseuds/Livitup
Summary: Joker couldn't be happier. The Noah's Ark circus was gaining popularity. They had even been asked to perform in one of the biggest carnivals in England. If you ignore the fact that Father was getting more greedy by the day, life was perfect. But is this carnival the opportunity of a lifetime, or a death trap.Bonds, friendship, and everything the performers know will be tested. If they get out alive...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there! I'm Livitup and I'm back with another black butler fic! If you've read one of my other fics (Scarlet Fever, Deadly Efficient, Let go,) You're already familiar with my writing style. If you have read my work before you know that I love love love the shinigami, or grim reapers, whatever you wanna call em'. Sadly no reapers in this fic, but if you're a fan of the Noah's Ark Circus truope you'll like this! So then my lovely readers, get ready to read this! (I had no better ideas for titles.)

"IIIIIIIIT'S SHOOOW TIIIME!" Joker cheered, signaling the start of the performance. 

The show went flawlessly to the untrained eye, but Joker was keenly aware of the slightest mistakes.

Peter extended his arms a millisecond later. Any later and Wendy would fall to her death. A slight miscalculation of the fire Jumbo controlled and fire would be springing up all over. A slight misstep sent one of Dagger's blades flying an inch closer to the human target. Doll twisting her ankle ever so slightly,a bit too much and she could slip and fall. 

Fortunately the show ran fine and soon the troupe had taken their final bows and returned backstage... to get yelled at by Joker.

"Peter! You almost let Wendy fall!" Joker snapped!

"But I..." 

"I don't care! Do you value her life at all?"

"He seemed fine to me" Wendy said defensively. 

"Dagger!" Joker yelled, turning his rage on someone else. "You could have hit that girl! You were completely off balance!" 

"I'm sorry! It's my leg! It's been acting up ever since...our last errand!"

"Well get it fixed!" Joker said angrily. "Doll, your leg twisted and you don't even have a prosthetic!"

"I'm sorry! I slipped!" Doll said, looking down.

"One slip and you could die!" Joker snapped. 

"I'm gonna take Dagger to see Doc." Doll sad in a low voice."Come on now. Hold on to me"

"I can still walk" Dagger protested as the two left the tent.

 

After Joker finished chewing everyone out he attempted to return to his tent but was stopped by Beast.

"What's gotten into you?" she demanded. "This isn't like you!"

Joker sighed. "I'm sorry alright. I've been stressed."

"You know something we don't" Beast said accusingly. "Is it Father? what does he want now..."

"It's not Father. It's...something else."

"Then tell me"

Joker leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"WHAT?!"

"I know. Pretty stressful huh?"

"It's incredible! How could you not tell the rest of us?"

"Well, I didn't want to stress you all out"

"At least go apologize. I think you hurt Doll's feelings"

"Alright" Joker said, heading for Doc's tent.

 

"Here's the problem!" Doc said brightly, holding up a lead bullet. "Stuck in the leg joint. Shouldn't give you a problem now"

"Oh good" Dagger said. "I thought I had broken it some how."

He went outside to see Doll waiting for him.

"Waited for me did you?" he said smiling brightly.

"You alright?" Doll said, looking towards Dagger's leg.

"Yep! Just a bullet in the joint. Wonder how that got there?" he finished ruefully, remembering the police shootout the night before. "At least now maybe Joker won't yell at me!"

Doll looked down sadly.

"You're taking it personal huh?" Dagger said. Doll nodded.

"He's just having a bad day. It'll pass" Dagger said brightly.

"Hope you're right" Doll said. "I don't like when he's mad at us"

"Dagger! Doll! There ee' are! Wanted to apologize for earlier!" Joker said, running towards them.

"What did I tell you?" Dagger said happily. 

 

After Joker had finished apologizing, he returned to his tent, to find Doll. 

"What're you doin' here?" he asked.

"Couldn't sleep" Doll said. "And I was curious"

"About what?"

"Why you were so angry. It wasn't any of our faults! We're all tired from last night! Peter and Jumbo must have just been feeling exhaustion! And Dagger had a bullet stuck in his leg and and...and me. I wasn't paying attention. You should only be mad at me. 

"Why should I be mad at you?" Joker said, ruffling Doll's hair. "If anything you all should be mad at me!"

"But why were you so angry? Doll asked him, leaning against his chest.

Joker whispered in Doll's ear as well. 

"ARE YOU SERIOUS!!!" Doll yelled excitedly! "THAT'S AMAZING!"

"Shh. Hush now. Don't want to wake anyone. Keep it a secret for me ok?"

Doll nodded. "Night then!" 

Joker smiled watching the girl run off. Now would she keep the secret?

 

"Did you see the bloke in the front"

"Nearly wet himself he did during your act Jumbo!"

Peter and Wendy burst into laughter, enjoying their nightly ritual of laughing at stupid looking members of the audience. 

Jumbo sat beside them, smiling. He was especially attached to these two. 

"That lady in the back screamed when Beast stuck her head in Betty's mouth!" Wendy laughed.

"I saw that! Bloody coward!" Peter crowed. 

"Alright. That's enough teasing for now" Jumbo said in his deep voice. "Don't want to jinx tomorrow's show"

"You're too superstitious!" Peter said.

Before Jumbo could leave Doll rushed into the tent.

"Hello Doll" Wendy said brightly.

Doll nodded hello then looked around guiltily. 

"Are you alright?" Wendy asked.

Doll nodded and pressed her lips tight.

"Then what are you...someone's told you a secret haven't they!" Peter accused.

Doll shrugged, shook her head, shrugged again, then nodded.

"Then tell us!" Wendy said"

Doll shook her head.

"Come on! Out with it you stupid..." Peter trailed off as Jumbo placed a hand on his shoulder. 

"You can tell us if you want" Jumbo said in his low tones.

Doll whispered in Wendy's ear, who whispered in Peter's ear, who whispered in Jumbo's ear.

"That's wonderful!" Wendy cried.

"I know! Doll said excitedly, but it's a secret so don't tell anyone!"

"You mean like you did?" Peter said snidely. A look from Wendy shut him up. 

"Don't tell anyone!" Doll called running off.

"Go to bed Dagger!" Beast yelled for the third time.

"But I want to be with you my lady!" Dagger responded. 

Beast answered him by pulling the flaps to her tent shut. 

"Come on! Please please don't close me out!"

Beast sighed. "Alright. If I tell you something important, will you leave me alone?"

Dagger nodded. 

"Alright come here. It's supposed to be a secret"

Beast leaned over whispering in Dagger's ear.

"WHAT! THAT'S that's...I NEED TO GO PRACTICE MY ACT!" Dagger yelled, running off. He didn't see the coral snake slithering away.

Snake was sitting at his usual post outside the first string circus member's tents. 

"Hello Emily. Did you enjoy your stroll?"

The coral snake hissed in reply.

"Yes. I am aware that you do more slithering then strolling."

The snake hissed again.

"it's alright. You heard something interesting?"

The coral snake hissed once more.

"Ah. That is interesting." Snake replied, looking in the direction of Joker's tent. 

 

Joker sat in his tent, staring at a picture of Father. He hadn't told Father about what was happening, nor did he plan to. He didn't know what consequences were going to be if Father found out but...Joker raised his head at an unfamiliar sound. 

Silence.

A circus was never silent. 

Bolting out of his tent Joker didn't stop running until he found all the first string members...sitting unnaturally still, staring at him.

"Is...everything alright?" Joker said, suddenly feeling pressure under all the stony glares. 

Two seconds passed. Joker looked at Doll, who looked away, looked at the others for help and then muttered, "Sorry" under her breath.

Then everyone started talking at once.

"Could have told us this!" 

"Why'd you keep it to yourself you stupid..."

"AHHHHH! I'LL NEVER BE READY!"

"What about Father? He'll..."

"Is this really a good idea..."

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!!!"

Despite his small demeanor Peter could be very loud when he wanted to be. 

"Well? Is it true?" Wendy asked in a small voice. 

"What I want to know" Joker said, "is how ee' all found out" 

Now the other members looked away uncomfortably. 

 

Then they all spoke at once again.

"It's all Doll's fault!"

"It's not I swear! I didn't tell anyone..except for three people..."

"I only told Dagger!"

"I didn't tell anyone!"

"QUIET!" Joker yelled. "One at a time"

"Well you told me" Beast started. "And I only told Dagger"

"And I didn't tell anyone!" Dagger said.

"I... may have told Peter. And Wendy. And Jumbo" Doll said.

"None of us told anyone" Wendy said.

"So how does he know?" Peter asked, pointing at Snake.

"I'm sorry! I was following Dagger and I overheard Beast talking and I can't keep a secret to save my life! Don't think any less of me!" Says Emily" Snake said, adjusting his voice to speak for the snake.

"Yes, and we don't think low of snakes in the first place...DID IT JUST SAY IT WAS FOLLOWING ME!?"

"SO IS IT TRUE OR NOT" Peter snapped. 

"Joker I'm sorry. I..I thought I could keep the secret...but..." Doll looked away sadly.

"Nothing to be ashamed of dear" Says Emily" Snake translated. 

"IS IT TRUE!?" Peter yelled again. 

"Alright. I apologize for not tellin' ee' all before now, I didn't want to stress anyone out..."

"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! IS.IT.TRUE.OR.NOT!!!" Peter yelled .

"Maybe you should look into anger management" Says Emily" Snake spoke up.

"Well maybe Emily should slither her way into a snakeskin clothing store..."

"EVERYONE!" Joker yelled. "Ladies, gentlemen, snakes" he added. "May I present..."

By holding up a simple flier everyone went silent. 

"Oh my God..."


	2. Preparation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The most stressful performances are when you know that someone's watching your every move...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm back again with chapter 2!!! Sorry about the paragraph weirdness in the last chapter. I got it under control this time! Anyways, enjoy!

Sir Mountebank's Entrancing Fabulous Festival and Traveling Carnival

Come this month to see...

THE BATTLE OF THE CIRCUSES!!!!!

Come soon to see eight fabulous circuses come to show us their best acts, their daring-est tricks, and the deadliest finales!

You don't want to miss this!

Come down to Sir Mountebank's to see the crown ruler of the circuses!

(Battle of the Circuses is trademarked under the name of Nathaniel Mountebank. All Mountebank adds and fliers are trademarked as well. All rights reserved.)

Circuses performing

The Aegis Circus

The Wonder Cirque

Circus Borealis

Cirque Dreamscape

Noah's Ark Circus

Duchess Cervantes' Big top Wonderlust

The Living Circus

Circus de Magnifico 

 

"Sir Mountebank's is the biggest carnival around"

"Anyone that performs there gets loads of publicity!"

"This is incredible!"

Joker smiled at the reactions of the other circus members. 

 

"But why were you so stressed out?" Beast said smiling.

Joker felt his own smile fade. "Because judges from Sir Mountebank's come to judge performances and rank the performing circuses one through eight. The first rank is the one to beat. The eighth is a laughing stock"

"So when are they coming?" Dagger asked.

"Tonight"

"WHAT!" the troupe yelled in unison. 

"They'll be watching us tonight!?"

"But we're not ready!"

"I..I'm going to mess up...and...and accidentally cut off my other leg...and kill the target and...and..."

"Why didn't you tell us!"

"Well we're screwed" Peter said, turning to leave.

"Come now! Ee' can't expect to win with that attitude!" Joker said. "We just need to go out there and do our best! We'r professionals after all."

 

The sky soon matched the anxiety of the performers. Gray and rumbling. 

Beast sat in her tent to avoid the rain, calmly looking at outfits for the night's performance. 

A sudden swishing noise cut through the air, soon followed by another. 

Beast pulled a raincoat over herself and went outside to investigate. 

 

She'd only walked a little ways out when she saw Dagger fervently rehearsing his act in the rain.

When a knife flew from his fingertips, it cut through the rain, sending silvery droplets flying, a loud swishing noise slicing the silence with a loud swooshing noise, ending by hitting the wooden target dead center.

Beast had to marvel at his aim. Even in the rain he never missed his mark. She only had to take a few steps closer to see the visible nerves showing on his face. 

"No no no! That spun to the right! Aghh! I'll never get this right!!"

"OI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING! YOU'RE GONNA FREEZE!" Beast called to him. 

He turned and saw her.

"I'M ALRIGHT! I JUST NEED TO PRACTICE!"

"GET INSIDE ALREADY!"

After a shouting match took place between them, Beast marched over and dragged a soaking wet Dagger back to her tent.

"What were you thinking going out in the rain with no coat where you can hardly see with knives!"

"I wasn't thinking! I just needed more practice!"

Beast sighed and threw a towel over him. "Your act is fine. The last thing we need is for you to catch cold" 

"You mean it?" Dagger said looking up at her.

"Yeah. Your act always gets a standing ovation."

"I thought you'd be practicing. You're act always goes different every time"

"Does not."

"Does too"

"Betty's a wild animal while knives are...knives" 

"Speaking of knives...I left mine outside"

"I'll get them" Beast said standing. "You're wet enough already"

She turned to leave

"And get water on anything and I'll feed you to Betty"

 

Jumbo was sitting in his tent when Wendy entered. 

"I'm nervous!" she burst out. "I'm almost tempted to ask for..." her voice lowered. "A safety net" 

"You don't need one" Jumbo said. 

"Well maybe we do. I mean...Oh I just don't know"

"What does Peter think?"

"He's pretending to sleep. I know he's pretending because he never tosses and turns this much when he's asleep"

"Maybe you should talk it over with him"

"Alright! I'll be right back with sleeping beauty!"

"Go to sleep...Go to sleep...Go to sleep..."

Peter turned over over once more. Telling himself to go to sleep clearly wasn't working, and counting sheep was childish and below him...

"WAKE UP SLEEPING BEAUTY!"

Now he was being shaken and yelled at. 

"What! WHAT?! STOP SHAKING ME!"

"Oh good. You're up" Wendy said, smiling brightly. 

"I was sleeping"

"Yeah right"

"I was too!"

"You know, maybe we should change our name from "Peter and Wendy" to "Sleeping Beauty"

"What does that have to do with the trapeze?"

"Well when I'm flying through the air it feels like a dream" Wendy said.

"I applaud your poetic...poetry. Now I'm going to sleep"

"You are not!"

"Watch me!"

"Ok"

Two minutes passed.

"I CAN'T SLEEP WHILE YOU'RE WATCHING ME!"

"I know. Now come on!" 

Peter reluctantly allowed Wendy to drag him out into the rain. 

 

"I brought him!" Wendy sang, dragging Peter into Wendy's tent. 

"Welcome Sleeping Beauty" Jumbo said.

"Not glad to be here...WAIT A MINUTE!" 

"His majesty couldn't sleep because he's scared" Wendy said innocently.

"What? I'm not scared."

"Whatever you say Princess"

"ALRIGHT! NEITHER OF YOU ARE ALLOWED TO CALL ME THAT!"

Even though Peter was protesting his not princess-ness, simply being in the other's company was making him feel calmer...

"Where's your crown Princess?"

"EEYARRGH!"

...Sort of. 

 

"I need to talk to you"

Snake opened the flaps to his tent wider to let Doll enter. 

"Hello Keats, Wordsworth, Oscar, Wilde, Bronte, Goethe, Webster," Doll said.

"You for got me" says Emily" Snake said.

"Oh. Hello Emily"

"What brings you here?" Says Wordsworth" Snake translated.

"I don't know. I want an opinion on my act"

"Whatever do you mean?" says Oscar"

"Well, I want to know what others think of it, and this place seems to have the most opinions" Doll said. 

"Your act is wonderful. You're not called the Princess of the show for nothing" says Keats"

"Thanks, but is it good?"

"I don't know why you're asking us. Who on earth doesn't like your act" says Webster" 

"Peter for one"

"Well you can just ignore him! He told me to slither into a snakeskin shop! Dagger on the other hand is very nice. I ought to be out with him right now" Such devotion Emily" Snake said. 

"I think you just need to go out there and do your best. Which is fabulous" Says Wilde"

"Alright! I will"

"We'll be doing the same. But you need to work on your part Keats. You were a little late" Says Bronte"

"Was not! You're just dumber then snakeskin mittens!" There's no need for such language Keats"

"Both of you were terrible. I was the best" Proud aren't we Oscar"

"You are not! You're as dumb as Bronte!" I'd very much appreciate it if you'd stop yelling Keats" 

"Ignore all these boys. You're wonderful just the way you are" says Emily" 

Doll smiled "I will! Thanks Snake! Thanks, um, snakes. Bye!"

"Such a lovely girl. I like her" Lovely compliment Emily. I'm sure she'd like to hear that. 

"Speaking of hearing, wait til' you hear this" More gossip Oscar? Oh well. Out with it. This should be better then your last tale"

"Alright ev'ry one. You know the drill. Now don't be nervous. Just treat this like any other night"

The others nodded nervously in response to Joker's reassuring smile. 

"Alright then. We can only do our best" Beast said, stroking Betty.

"We'd better go up to the trapiezes. Come on Princess...I mean Peter" Wendy said.

"I'll let you fall"

 

The show went off without a hitch until the grand finale. Doll's act.

"Alright" Joker said. "Bring us home Doll"

There was a tap on his shoulder.

"You need something Snake?"

"Geothe has noticed something alarming." Snake said, pointing to the tightrope.

"Someone's untied one end!" Joker yelled in realization. 

"It won't hold her weight" Snake said calmly. "I've sent Keats to hold it down, but someone needs to go retie it"

Joker could see a snake slithering up the tightrope, wrapping itself around the untied rope and the supporting beam.

"I'll do it" 

Everyone looked in surprise when they realized it was Peter who had spoken.

"Why you?" Dagger asked.

"Well it's not like any of you idiots can get up that high easily" Peter said, crossing his arms angrily. "And I want to get into that carnival." 

"How are you going to get up there without the audience seeing" Beast asked, eyes on Doll. 

"I'll use the old trapeze. It's hooked up right back there" 

"Be careful. Remember we got new ones because the ropes on those nearly snapped" Joker said.

"I know! I was the one that almost fell!" Peter snapped, turning around.

 

Doll was in the final part of her routine when she noticed Dagger waving at her. What did he want?

He motioned something to her.

Slow down? Why would she slow down? This was the best part. He hadn't slowed down during his final part. Why not...do it faster?"

 

"She's not slowing down!" Dagger reported.

"As long as she doesn't go any faster Peter will make it" Joker said.

"SHE'S GOING FASTER!" 

"Oh no"

Peter hooked his legs around the supporting beam. Anyone else (Except maybe Wendy) would have been a stupid choice to do this. Slowly transitioning arms around the beam and hooking his legs over the trapeze, he realized he was holding on to a snake.

"WHAT THE!? I'm going to kill snake."

Moving his hands off the snake, Peter located the rope and retied it. 

"Ok. That should hold it."

Surveying the audience Peter felt a pang of jealousy seeing the amount of attention Doll received from the audience. His act never got as much applause. (But then he was upside down most of the time so he didn't see much)

Letting go of the beam he swung back upside down.

The rope snapped. 

He didn't even have time to cry out. The ground was coming far to fast.

He risked it all for Doll of all people when he was the one who...

He hit something.

"Alright Princess"

"Jumbo!"

The fire eater had caught him at the last second. 

"I'll let you go for calling me Princess once alright?"

"Jumbo you saved the Princess!" Wendy said brightly.

"Oi" Peter facepalmed. 

"Alright, I'm sorry. Are you Ok Peter?"

"Let's get something straight" Peter said. "You never saw me fall, and Jumbo never rescued me"

"Ok, Ok" Wendy said. 

"Jumbo put me down!"

"Yes..."

"DON'T YOU SAY IT!"

"...Your majesty"

"Ugh..."

 

Doll went backstage smiling...

"DOLL!"

Dagger tackled her into a hug.

"Woah woah! What's wrong?"

"You're ok!"

"Of course I am!"

Taking the final bows never felt so good to Doll.

 

"Well?" Beast asked when Joker entered the tent with a letter.

"This is it." He said. "The rankings"

Beast drew in a breath. Wendy clutched Peter's arm. (Peter moved slightly closer to Jumbo, not that he'd ever admit it) Doll dug her nails into Dagger's arm out of nerves (Ow, ow,ow,ow" said Dagger)

Joker held up the paper.

Noah's ark circus. 1st rank

"WE DID IT!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So ends the second chapter. I know there was a lot of Peter and Wendy in this chapter. There'll be more of the other members in the next one! If you're liking this, you should book mark! Lots more chapters to come! I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you next time! :)


	3. Traveling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Interesting how long trips can bring out the best in someone...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm back again! Wow, two kudos already and I haven't had this up for two weeks yet! Wow! Anyways, support is appreciated and if there's anything you want to see happen in the story just go ahead and comment and I'll work it in somehow!
> 
> Enough about that! Let's start the chapter!

"NOBODY MOVE!!"

Beast had spent the last three hours getting everyone on the train. THREE HOURS! It wasn't easy. Either Dagger forgot this, or Doll needed to get that, or Peter stood three inches away from the train to mess with her, IT WAS GETTING ON HER NERVES!

Joker had decided that the best way to travel would be by train. All the tents and equipment would be sent one way, while the first string members would be going by train.

Finally everyone was on the train.

"Oh wait. I forgot something" Peter said, stepping towards the train exit.

"PETER DON'T YOU DARE!" Beast shrieked. Peter only smiled and stepped closer to the exit.

"PETER! SO HELP ME IF YOU TAKE ONE MORE STEP I'LL CRUSH YOUR TINY SKULL!"

Wendy pulled Peter back before he could take another step.

And there was silence

For the moment at least

"You alright Beast?" Doll asked, sliding into the seat next to her.

"Yes. Just a little annoyed."

The door to the compartment slid open and Dagger fell in. Fell in as tripped over his ow feet and hit the ground face first.

"Are you ok!?" Doll yelled running over to him. 

"I'm fine. Ow. I didn't think anyone was in here"

"Translation: "I didn't know Beast was in here and panicked" Doll teased. 

"No! I just tripped! Uh, I'll leave you girls here and all..."

"Yes you can sit here Dagger" Beast said rolling her eyes.

"Oh good! I mean, If you insist" 

 

In another compartment Peter was sulking in a corner. 

"This isn't so bad" Wendy said, trying to raise her companion's spirits. 

"Wish Jumbo was here" Peter muttered. 

Jumbo had been sent with the tents as supervision

"What's wrong?" Wendy asked. "You're acting strange, and I don't think its about the train or Jumbo."

"It doesn't matter alright! Now stop bothering me!" 

He hadn't even touched her but Wendy felt like she'd been slapped. 

 

Doll couldn't of been happier. She was enjoying time with two of her favorite people in the world. 

"Hey! You two want some of these?" Doll held up some of her favorite Phantomhive candies.

"Where did you get those?" Dagger asked, admiring the fistfull. 

"I have more then this! A man gave me some saying my act was wonderful!" Doll said. 

"Only you would take candy as praise" Dagger said, taking one.

"How bout' you Beast? Want one?" Doll asked.

"Sure" Beast said, taking one. If only life really tasted this sweet.

 

Joker stood in a cabin staring out a window, Snake at his side.

"Can I tell ee' somethin'?" Joker asked.

"Sure" Snake said, speaking for himself for once. 

"I don't trust this competition. The more I think about it, the more it seems like a trap."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't really explain it. Can ee' keep an eye on the other members?"

"Of course"

Joker couldn't explain it to Snake. How could he say that they had abducted the daughter of Sir Mountebank

 

Wendy sat outside a compartment, trying to think of ways to get Peter to talk.

"Wendy?" Doll was standing a little ways away from her.

"Oh hello. What are you doing here?"

"Answerin' nature's call" Doll said shamelessly. "Where's your other half?"

"He's...not feeling well. I was giving him some space"

"Well when you see him, give em' one of these" Doll said, handing over two candies before walking off. 

Wendy sighed. It was worth a try.

 

"Wake up!" Doll said, shaking Dagger again. 

"Hm? Wha!? I'm up! What's the emergency!" Dagger's hand went instinctively towards his knives on his belt before it was caught by Beast. 

"Relax. You're on a train. Did you sleep at all last night?"

"No" Dagger admitted.

"Well go ahead and sleep now. Not sure there'll be much time for that later." Beast said.

"Um, alright" Dagger said awkwardly.

"Just lean on me" Beast said, pulling Dagger over until his head rested on her shoulder. 

Doll expected to hear Dagger's broken attempts at speech that he used whenever Beast was around, but he was already asleep, the remains of a blush fading from his face. 

"What? He's not that annoying" Beast said in response to Doll's grinning face. 

 

Peter groaned and turned over. Guilt was eating him alive. Why had he done something so stupid?

"Peter?" Wendy asked, knocking on the door. He opened it.

"Peter..."

"I'm sorry"

Wendy pulled him into a hug. "Want to tell me what's wrong?"

"WE'RE HERE!!!" Doll yelled at the top of her lungs, making Beast jump up in surprise, throwing Dagger to the ground. 

"Owwww!"

"Sorry! But we're here!" 

They were indeed. Even from the train station the troupe could see the tops of the colorful tents.

"This could end very well or very badly" Dagger said.

"Oh don't be so negative" Wendy said as she and Peter joined them.

"He has a point" Peter said. 

"Don't you start!"

 

The five circus members stared at the tents over the horizon. 

"Why stare at it when you can see it for real" Joker said, walking up to them. 

"LET'S GO!!!" Doll and Dagger cheered together. 

 

Nathaniel Mountebank looked at the view from his tent. 

"I see you've arrived safely." he muttered seeing the approaching troupe. 

"Nothing special? But my dear, I know they took my darling Veronica."

Silence.

"Oh don't talk to me that way. The show must go on, my sweet and that group is in for the adventure of a lifetime.

Mountebank put on a stage smile and stepped out of his tent, green diamond on his ring gleaming strangely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dunnnnn!!!!! I'm sorry, I suck at cliff hangers but I needed some way to end the chapter sooo...Crappy cliffhangers!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed and i'll be back soon after I update some other fics! I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you all next time!!!


	4. Arriving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When you want something as bad as possible, it's easy to overlook the slightest wrong detail to make your vision perfect. But those details will come to haunt you eventually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi yall! It's been a while since I've updated! (Turns out i have nine other fics going on besides this one. Eesh)
> 
> But I'm back to update this one so here we go!
> 
> A few things before we start. I got asked these questions in a chatroom so I'll answer them here like I promised. 
> 
> Who's your favorite book of circus character and why? Either Peter or Dagger. I found Dagger really cute and i liked Peter's charecter
> 
> Do you like Sebastian and Ciel? No. Sebastian can be funny, but he's not my favorite. And I hate Ciel for some reason. PLEASE DON'T LET THAT STOP YOU FROM LIKING MY WORK!!!!
> 
> Well here we go! Next chapter!!!

"Am I seeing double?" Peter asked. A man that looked a lot like Joker except with blond hair was standing in front of him. 

"Ol Nathy Mountebank's a master of disguise" Joker laughed. "He can look like anyone!!!" 

"Yay" Peter said. "Where are we sleeping? I'm exhausted and don't want to talk to anyone." 

"Well this is a regular ray of sunshine" Mountebank said. "How bout you introduce me Joker." 

"Alright then!" Joker said, and began introducing the troupe.

"That lovely lady is Beast, and the bloke with the knives is Dagger" Beast nodded in greeting and Dagger waved happily. 

"Over there is Peter and Wendy. And the giant next to them is Jumbo!" Wendy and Jumbo smiled. Peter crossed his arms and scowled. 

"This is Doll" Joker said. "And that's Snake, accompanied by Keats, Wordsworth, Oscar, Wilde, Bronte, Goethe, Webster, and Emily" 

"Lovely lovely I'm a little over booked on terms of space so the boys will have to be in one tent and the girls in the other. 

 

"Well here we are!" Joker said. Lovely tent!"

"It's dirty, dusty, and smells like a wet skunk" Peter said.

"But it's lovely" Joker said, staying positive. 

Dagger was talking to Snake excitedly. "Did you see those other people? They were mimes! A whole circus full of mimes! Fascinating!!" 

"Sleeping arrangements!" Joker called. "Alright, Jumbo, you're over there where the ceiling is a little higher. Peter, you go in that corner next to him. I think you're the only one who can fit comfortably in there. Snake, you can go over there. There's some personal space for you, and even more room for your friends. Dagger, you and me will be over here."

The male members of the troupe settled in comfortably, then went to check on the girls. 

 

"Not bad!" Doll said happily. Emily the snake was wound around her neck. 

"It's...nice" Wendy said, eyeing the shabby walls.

"Good enough. Betty will be rooming with us as well" Beast said.

"Yay!" cheered Doll.

"Ohhh." Wendy said. 

"Alright in here?" Joker called.

"Yes. It's nice enough" Beast replied. 

"Dagger! Let's go exploring!" Doll said.

"Yeah!!"

"You mind going with them?" Joker asked Snake quietly. "i don't want them to get lost"

Snake nodded and walked off with the pair.

"I want to check out the competition" Peter said. "Wendy, Jumbo, come with me" 

"You an' me then" Joker said to Beast"

Beast froze, the familiar blush coming to her cheeks. "If you insist" she said coolly.

 

"This place is so cool!" Doll said, running around. "LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT TIGHTROPE!!"

"Look at those knives!" Dagger said, admiring at set of knives on display.

Snake calmly walked beside them.

"Hello" a voice said. A girl dressed in black strode out of the shadows. "Are you lost"

"Maybe" Doll said grinning"

"No. We were just leaving" Snake said, sensing something off about this girl.

"we were?" Dagger said. "But we just go he..Mph!" Snake slapped his hand over the knife thrower's mouth.

"Very well. Snakes aren't fans of birds after all" the girl stepped back into the shadows and vanished. 

"Scary" Dagger said. "Let's not let that end our exploring! I'm having fun!" 

 

Peter was being tortured by mimes. 

"STOP THAT!!" Peter snapped as the mimes circled him, patted him on the head, and made gestures that he was very small. 

"OW!" he yelled as one yanked his hair. "JUMBO! WENDY! HELP!"

It was very rare to hear Peter yell for help of any kind, so both were quick to help. Jumbo easily scared the mimes away in under two seconds.

"I think I'll borrow some of Dagger's knives, or maybe even borrow Dagger so I can make some slashed mime."

"Peter" Wendy said. "Ignore them. You're better then they'll ever be"

"How" Peter snapped. Being called small really touched a nerve, and he had been feeling like a smaller and smaller part of the circus. Everyone loved Wendy. She was adorable and cute, and played the part. Peter didn't want to do that. Jumbo was terrifying and commanded control. No one got it. He was the black sheep of the circus.

"For one you talk" Wendy said. "And I place my life in your hands every single show and you've never let me fall."

"You saved me on the streets" Jumbo said. 

Peter flashed back on the first time he met Jumbo. 

The police had cornered him and were hitting him with their sticks although Jumbo had done nothing wrong. 

Wendy and Peter had snuck up behind the cops and bombarded them with rocks. 

"RUN!" Peter had yelled to Jumbo before taking off himself. 

The police had eventually caught up with them. Peter had heard Wendy scream first, then he too was lifted into the air. 

"About time I caught you little rats" The police man spat. "I'm supposed to bring you in, but who's gonna know I killed you. 

Stars had flooded Peter's vision as the policeman choked him. Suddenly he was dropped and the policeman's body was laying broken a few feet away. The giant of a man was standing over them. 

 

"You saved me too" Peter said. 

"You started the circle. It was your idea to help him" Wendy said. "Now come on Princess. Let's find the others"

"We're really going back on the princess thing?"

 

The troupe met up to see Nathaniel Mountebank and...

"Her!" Dagger said, pointing to the black clad girl.

"Don't mind Kestrel." Mountebank said. "She's an acrobat and my circus's Princess."

"We have a Princess too." Dagger said.

"It's Peter" Wendy said quickly.

"HEY!"

"It's not Peter. I'ts Doll" Jumbo said quickly. 

"Mm. So I see Kestrel said. Her eyes looked them up and down. Then she walked off.

"She doesn't have the best of manners" Mountebank said. Ignore her. Anyways, get some sleep. Big day tomorrow." 

 

In Mountebank's tent, Mountebank stroked the crystal around his neck.

"You're running out of time" a voice hissed. "You have them here so now you kill" 

"I will darling. And there's no need to speak through the crystal. You're right here.

"You kill now" the voice said, gathering strength, "And I get what I want"

"Yes. Your deal"

"Contract if you will. But I'm no demon."

"I'm all too aware" Mountebank said.

Her laughter roared in his ears until it was all he could hear.

 

"Night then lads" Joker said. It was odd. He thought to himself. Mountebank seemed to have forgotten his daughter. Did he know it was them who had taken her?

It was time to find out.

 

Later that night the other three in the tent awoke. 

"Where's Joker?" Peter asked. 

"I don't know. Maybe he needed to take care of business." Dagger said. 

"I'm back!" Joker said. 

"Your hair looks blond" Peter commented.

"You're seeing things. You're clearly tired." Joker said.

"Mm" Peter said turning over.

 

A few yards away from the tent, a second redheaded Joker was following a trail of blood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dunnnnnn! Cliff hanger!!! Hope you enjoyed. Please leave a kudos and I'll see you next time!!


	5. Murder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In competitions everyone says they would die if they didn't win, but is there truth behind those words

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! Now, I really hate OCs for some reason, so I'm trying to only use the characters that belong to Yana Toboso, but I need to introduce the other circuses as background characters so if you hate OCs to, just bear with me!

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT OVER HALF THE TROUPES DISAPPEARED!" Peter yelled at the top of his lungs. He had discovered that the louder you say something, you're more likely to get a faster answer. 

"I said that five of the troupes have dropped out. It's only us and Mountebank's troupe, and two other troupes." Joker said. 

"Less competition" Dagger said brightly. "But I do wonder where the other troupes went off to."

Joker had a slight idea since he had seen so much blood last night. The strange thing was that the other male troupe members didn't recall him leaving at all. Dagger even swore that Joker had woken them up at one point and Joker had no memory of that. 

"Morning!" Doll said happily. "Ready to meet the rest of the troupes?"

"No" said Peter, but he was dragged along anyways. 

 

The four remaining troupes made an interesting looking group. 

"Presenting the Aegis Circus!" Mountebank said, as a gang of mimes stood up, bowed, and sat down. 

"Why couldn't of they disappeared!?" Peter said.

 

"Feast your eyes upon...The living circus!!" Mountebank cried!

"An all animal circus?" Beast asked as a pretty blond woman stood up, showed off a small herd of animals and sat down.

 

"And I would personally like to introduce you to my troupe!" Mountebank said. "First of all...The breath taking Balthazar and his assistant Bella!" 

"A magician!" Doll said excitedly as a sandy haired young man and a girl about Doll's age stood up and bowed. 

"Next, the Mystifying Maximilian!" Mountebank said.

"A hypnotist" Joker said thoughtfully as young man stood up and bowed. 

"The Dazzling Desiree!" A woman with flaming red hair stood up and bowed. In her hands she held...

"A ventriloquist dummy?" Dagger asked. "That's unusual."

"Then we have the princess of the Mountbank Carnival" Mountebank said. "The queen of birds, Kestrel!" 

The dark haired girl twirled and sat down.

"But what does she do?" Doll asked, but there was no way of telling. 

"I encourage you all to get to know each other! Go on, talk!"

"Easy for him to say. Half of them are mimes and animals" said Peter

 

Two hours later, the Noah's ark Circus troupe escaped from the meet and greet.

"We're better then they are" Peter said.

"Don't boast" Jumbo said, but he knew Peter was right. 

" I can't believe a whole circus is mimes" Wendy said. 

"I have a feeling things are going to get weirder." Beast said. "They always do"

 

"No! We've done enough for now!" Mountebank said. If only he was alone in his tent. With him was the controller of his fate.

"But it was fun to kill the other circuses. We could off a few mimes. They wouldn't tell" the female voice cackled in delight.

"I am the ringleader and I say no more killing" Mountebank said angrily.

"I am your ringleader." the voice responded. "We made a deal. A contract if you will"

"Demon" Mountebank growled.

"Excuse me?" the voice took on an amused tone. "I am not a demon, nor is my contract a demons. You will order me, I will serve you, but I get what I want no matter what it is" 

"I know. You've only told me hundreds of times, but no more killing. The troupe is questioning my orders and you wouldn't want your cover blown" 

"Hmmm" said the voice. "Well played. But we kill again before long"

"We always do" Mountebank said as the owner of the voice swept out of the tent.

 

"I want to go home" Oddly enough the voice belonged to Dagger.

"Why? We just got here" Beast said. 

"Something doesn't feel right" Dagger said. "There's something wrong with this whole place."

"You'll feel better after we perform" Beast said. "There are no other knife throwers. You're the only one. I'm the one who should be worrying."

"Why?"

"A whole circus full of trained animals. I'll look like a knock off" 

"The animals are abused" says Geothe" Snake said all of a sudden.

"Well I'm not a hero!" Beast said, storming off.

"I'll talk to her. Probably just opening night jitters" Joker said, following her. 

Dagger watched him leave, wondering why it was never him who got to comfort his lady.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And end credits!!!! I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you next time!!


	6. Opening night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And I'm out of summary ideas. Whoops

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'm gonna make this a noah's ark circus character chapter only!
> 
> Enjoy

They were a mess. 

Usually the troupe was well prepared for opening night, but now that they were in the midst of a competition, the thought of failure was affecting them in different ways. 

Wendy had become extremely jumpy, shrieking at everything, and Peter sat there like a rock, apparently too nervous to function. Beast was pacing, muttering to herself and would snap at anyone who spoke to her. Dagger had become extremely klutzy and was now tripping over everything. Doll was talking like crazy and wouldn't shut up for two seconds. The only ones who didn't seem nervous were Jumbo, Joker and Snake.

Somehow Joker managed to hand out props, calm down Beast, and catch Dagger before he hit the ground from tripping over nothing.

"Everyone relax! We're professionals! We have it under control!" 

"We do?" Peter asked skeptically. 

"Yes we do! We're the Noah's ark circus troupe. Now, apparently it helps with nerves if we talk our our feelings" Joker said. "Who's starting?"

"Oh good lord" Peter said, turning away.

Doll went first. "I know I'm the Princess of the circus but that makes the audience expect something and if I fail I blow it all for all of us" 

"You won't blow it. You'll do fine" Joker said. "Next!"

Next was Dagger. "I'm klutzy, and I'll probably kill the target, and then kill a member of the audience, and then I'll kill myself, and then I'll trip over something, wait not in that order..."

"Calm down Dagger. I don't see how you'd do any of that."

"I can see how he'd trip over something" Peter said.

"Would you like to talk next Peter?" Doll said sweetly

"No" 

Beast went next. "I'll look like a copy cat! I only have on tiger, I...I..."

"You're lovely and don't let anyone tell you otherwise!" Dagger yelled quickly.

"Thanks" Beast said in surprise. 

Soon the feeling sharing session was over with Peter's ending words "This is stupid and I think I'm dying of patheticness." 

"Let's do what we do best" Joker said as they opened their act.

Opening night couldn't of gone better. Joker layed on heavy praise as the Noah's ark circus troupe celebrated backstage. 

"And now I have some bad news for ee' all." Joker said apologetically. 

"Oh joy" Peter said. "What's next? Someone kills the tiger? Call the newspapers! Joker has bad newsMph!" 

"I think we all know your views" Wendy said as she kept her hand over her partner's mouth.

"Father would like us to collect...a few more"

Even Peter was speechless at this, but no one was for long.

Joker was prepared for the storm of angry responses.

"Come now. No one wants to disappoint father now, do they?" Joker said, trying to calm them down.

"No, but can't we say we're busy?" Doll pleaded.

"He won't believe that, and it never takes long. We'll be in and out" Joker said brightly. 

"The last time you said that Dagger got lost, Wendy got hurt and Beast ended up locked in a house. That only took five extra hours" Peter said. "I think tonight's jinxed. If you don't mind me sitting out..."

"Didn't you end up getting chased by a very angry alley cat?" Doll said. 

"We're forgetting that ever happened" Peter said. "Fine. I'll go if no one ever brings that back up"

"Ok Princess Peter" Wendy said.

"Or that"

"Alright. We're leaving now. EVERYONE SHUT UP!" Beast screamed.

"No" Peter said quietly, but he followed the others out the door.

The seamstress watched as the little boy ran off into the streets, happily clutching the shawl she had just mended for him. It was for his mother he had said. He hadn't a penny in the world, but he would be happy to repay with his service. The seamstress could only hope that the boy had made it home safely. Neighboring towns had filed reports of missing children. 

 

The young boy ran home as fast as his legs could carry him, imagining the look on his mother's face when she saw he had mended her favorite shawl just in time for her birthday. He didn't see the figure standing on the roof above him.

 

"How are we even going to get the children back to father from out here?" Beast had asked.

"Father is sending a carriage. We are to place the children in there, and the driver will return the children." Joker had said.

"Can we do this quickly? It's cold out here" Wendy had said. She and Peter were both shivering, small bodies unable to keep themselves warm.

"Of course. We may need to change the way we usually do things as we don't know this area" Joker continued. "Doll with me, Jumbo with Peter and Wendy, Beast with Doll"

Snake had been left in the tent asleep.

 

Beast and Dagger were sent down a dark ally way to scout for children. Both were silent as they stepped cautiously around corners, careful not to be seen. 

"Dagger" Beast whispered, peering down the ally at a small boy with a shawl.

"Strange fashion choice" Dagger commented.

"No you dolt! Follow him"

The small boy continued on his way, unaware that two pairs of people were watching him.

 

Reapers always followed death. It was a fact of life. Reapers usually worked alone, unless another was in training.

"Mr Speeeeears! I wanna go back!"

William T Spears scowled and turned to face the trainee.

"Reaper Knox, death can take a short while, or hours. You must be patient and silent"

"I like Mr. Sutcliff better." Ronald Knox said, focusing on anything else then his boss

"Quiet Knox or it's overtime for you!"

 

The boy was almost home now! He could see the smiling face of his mother in his mind's eye...

"What's someone like you doin' out here on a night like this?"

 

Dagger put on his best show smile and hoped nothing would go wrong. Joker was usually the one to do the talking. What was it Joker usually said?

"Who're you?" The boy asked. "You look like you ran away from the circus!"

"I did! I mean, yes I'm from the circus" Dagger said quickly. 

"Must be fun. I've never been to a circus. Too expensive." the boy said.

"Ah well tonight you're in luck. How'd you like a special performance?"

"What?"

Just as Dagger ran out of things to say, Joker cartwheeled in out of nowhere.

"Like me friend says, we're from a circus here to give special performances to young un' like ee'"

"Yeah! That!" Dagger said, glad someone else was there to do the talking

"Really? You do tricks and stuff? Can you swallow that knife?" the boy asked Dagger excitedly.

"Ummm..."

"He can do better!" Joker said, coming to the rescue. "Watch as the amazing Dagger hits that far off pole with a single throw!!!" 

 

At the end of the night, five children had been collected and sent off to uncertain doom. It was the next morning and the troupe members were trying to forget about the night's events.

"IT'S THE ATTACK OF THE MIMES!!!" Peter yelled, running by. A herd of mimes followed him. 

"Poor thing" says Bronte" Snake said, speaking for his reptile. 

"Can't say he doesn't deserve something like this" says Emily" 

"He doesn't deserve it! He's been under a lot of pressure ever since..." Wendy trailed off. "I'm going to go help him" she said quickly, and ran off. 

"Ok then. Anyone else find that strange?" Dagger asked. 

 

A little while later, Doll found herself talking to Wendy. 

"Do you think Peter hates me?" she asked. 

"Oh, well, I'm not going to pretend that he's exactly friendly towards you" Wendy said sheepishly. "Peter, well he has it rough. He hates being like he is. I don't mind, but apparently being small goes against the code of manhood or something"

Doll smiled at that. 

"He just wants to be seen in a different light. At least he's living proof that not everyone in a circus is all smiles"

"Peter without a short temper is a storm without thunder. It makes it much louder, but it completes it. I guess Peter's the thunder of the circus." Doll said.

"Exactly. I'm sure he'd love to hear that" Wendy said. 

Behind a tent, Peter was standing there flushing half with pride, half with embarrassment.

"Alright everyone" Joker said. "We're gonna give those people a show like nothing they've ever seen in three days, but we need to work out if we need to add a little something extra to your acts."

The troupe members listened intently. (Peter was too. Wendy noticed he'd been in a better mood lately) 

"One word. Cannons!" Very ambitious aren't you Emily" Snake said, speaking for the coral snake. 

"Yeah!" Peter said.

"No!" Joker said. "I mean, lovely idea Emily, but that might be too much." 

"So what then?" Beast asked. 

"What's this? the great Beast has no idea?" Peter asked innocently.

"Now I do. Betty can eat Peter as a grand finale."

"HEY!" 

"It would be quieter here" 

"STOP FIGHTING!" Joker yelled. "We're all friends here! Does anyone have any other ideas?"

Beast spoke again. "Dagger could use Peter's head as a target..."

"An idea that does not involve harming Peter?" Joker asked, cutting Beast off.

"How about a really really big explosion?" Dagger suggested. 

"I'll keep that in mind" Joker said, slightly irritated that no one seemed to be taking anything seriously. 

"How about AHH! MIMES!" Peter yelled. Sure enough a group of mimes were peeking in the tent.

"How do you make an enemy out of mimes?" Joker muttered to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a short chapter, and I know I haven't updated in forever, but I've been sooo busy!! Enough excuses though! I'll update sooner and make it longer!

**Author's Note:**

> Alright! There's the first chapter. Something weird happened and now I can't get paragraphs where I want them, but I think it's ok for now. I hope you enjoyed and look out for the next chapter!!


End file.
